Wonder if they even tried to find a manufacturer in the USA. Small volume, and technically very simple. No language, time zone, import, or travel barriers.
For anyone who found this tale interesting, "Poorly Made in China" is a well-written and eye-opening account of similar antics.<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Poorly-Made-China-Insiders-Production/dp/0470928077" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/Poorly-Made-China-Insiders-Production/...</a><p>Much like the kickstarter project mentions, this book covers repeatedly broken promises, misleading claims (like the laser etching that turned out to be CNC), continuous reassurances followed by convenient disappearances, completely mythical factory sites and machinery, supposedly mechanical processes that turn out to be skilled hand-labor, and the need for vigilant and cynical quality control. It makes a convincing argument that once you account for the cost of all these shenanigans, export manufacturing is nowhere near as good a deal as it seems.
I'm amused at the mindset of trying to do low-volume and hence (for the factory) low-profit manufacturing runs in China and complaining when it turns out to be more difficult than uploading a file and waiting for a box of Apple-quality products to arrive at your front door.<p>Simple economics - if it was easy, everyone could do it.<p><i>I work on construction projects in China so I have an idea of the difficulties re: quality and expectations</i>
Reminds me of what Jeri Ellsworth told about making electronics in China[1]: "After getting to Hong Kong I opened one of the units to find that they had cost reduced my reference design without telling me. "<p>[1] <a href="http://www.eeweb.com/spotlight/interview-with-jeri-ellsworth" rel="nofollow">http://www.eeweb.com/spotlight/interview-with-jeri-ellsworth</a>
Quick Context link: <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cwandt/pen-type-a-a-minimal-pen" rel="nofollow">http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cwandt/pen-type-a-a-mini...</a><p>Short version:
They want to take the venerable Hi-Tec-C pen and put it in a steel body with a steel ruler sleeve. It will retail for $99.
<i>Pen Type-A is a stainless steel replacement for the Hi-Tec-C's cheap plastic housing. To us, the Hi-Tec-C cartridges deserve a more durable home.</i><p>This is kind of funny, I sort of did the same thing -- though my solution was much cheaper. I write a ton with ink and I had a hell of a time finding a pen that wrote smoothly, was gel, was rectractible (pen tops are a PITA), didn't smear, gave consistent lines, and was available at office stores for an affordable price. Well, the Pentel Energel pens met these requirements but the pen casing is flimsy and fat and very cheap feeling. So I just buy the refills and put them in a Sarasa SE pen casing. My only gripe is I would prefer a finer point. The Pentels only go to 0.7mm and I'd like at least 0.5mm, but this is good enough. Every gel pen I've used that size has problems (scratchy, suffers roller ball blowouts, etc.) so maybe good gel roller balls at that size present engineering problems.<p>Oh, and I also tried that Mont Blanc "hack" where you modify the refill cartridge so it fits in a cheapo Pilot G2 casing. I'm not willing to regularly pay $10-$15 for 2 ink refills, I just wanted to see what the fuss was all about. The writing was mediocre at best. Most noticeable was the problems I had with skipping and inconsistency. The value of Mont Blanc pens certainly does not come from the ink cartridges.
I assume there was some context in previous posts in this series, but I have no idea what's going on here.<p>Why are these guys trying to build a pen? What's a "minimal" pen? What's wrong with a fifty-cent Bic?
I'm always confused why if we have to outsource we don't try to build up our physical neighbors (Mexico) instead of propping up a communist government that we do not get along with (China).<p>Imagine the reductions in delivery cost and time if everything came from Mexico instead of China.
Another highly regarded pen is the Pentel Stylo MLJ20: <a href="http://www.cultpens.com/acatalog/Pentel_Tradio_Refills.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.cultpens.com/acatalog/Pentel_Tradio_Refills.html</a><p>The images from an artist who works with it: <a href="http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature.aspx?1332" rel="nofollow">http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature.aspx?1332</a>
This situation instantly reminded me of this recent <i>Wired</i> piece: <a href="http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/02/ff_madeinamerica/all/1" rel="nofollow">http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/02/ff_madeinamerica/all/1</a> (Made in America: Small Businesses Buck the Offshoring Trend)
Being a pessimist, I foresee many owners bending the casing just enough to make it useless ...<p>If not that, a grain of sand down the shaft will probably jam it good.<p>And, to be a complete spoilsport, "how it will look in fifty years" must be minus the nicks and dents on the sharp edges.